Lyme Disease Curriculum Guidelines Laws Passed in NJ

The Lyme Disease Association of New Jersey, now LDA, was successful in 1995 in having the following laws adopted in New Jersey, which developed Lyme disease curriculum guidelines for use in NJ schools and require NJ school districts to annually in-service any staff member who has a student with Lyme disease. P.L. 18A 35-5.1-5.3 (1992)

18A:35-5.1. Lyme Disease curriculum guidelines
1. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Health, shall develop curriculum guidelines for the teaching of information on the prevention of Lyme Disease within the public school health curriculum. The guidelines shall emphasize disease prevention and sensitivity for victims of the disease. The Commissioner of Education shall periodically review and update the guidelines to insure that the curriculum reflects the most current information available.

18A:35-5.2. Availability of guidelines
2. The commissioner shall make the curriculum guidelines available to all school districts in the State and shall encourage their adoption by those districts which are located in areas of the State which have a high incidence of Lyme Disease.

18A:35-5.3. Guidelines for, training of teachers instructing infected students
3. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Commissioner of Health, shall also provide curriculum guidelines for the training of all teachers who instruct students with Lyme disease which emphasizes the special needs and problems of students with the disease, in order to provide information about how best to teach those students. Each school district shall annually provide training to all teachers who instruct students with Lyme disease, based upon the guidelines.